Beyond Defeat and Austerity: Disrupting (the Critical Political Economy of) Neoliberal Europe PDF
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‘This book successfully debunks the idea that neo-liberalism and austerity are firmly established in Europe. In fact, austerity is constantly contested by a new, disruptive form of agency at the workplace and across society. This volume is a contribution of utmost importance to understanding exploitation and resistance in Europe, a must-read for everyone interested in progressive ways out of the crisis!’ Prof. Andreas Bieler, Professor of Political Economy, University of Nottingham ‘This book brings a breath of fresh air to the debate about Neoliberal Europe. Prevalent Marxist CPE approaches to European integration fail to connect Critical Political Economy with the disruptive force of labour struggles at the grassroots. To engage with this, the authors offer a disruptive-oriented approach to CPE. They call this approach “minor Marxism” for it focuses on disruption rather than domination. I believe that this minor Marxism is a major contribution to an understanding of the pre-figurative power of old and new working class resistances. The book shows that they can do both: challenge nationalistic and authoritarian tendencies of European integration and organise new anti-austerity radicalisms in defence of the commons, leading to an alternative integration from below.’ Dr Ana Cecilia Dinerstein, University of Bath, UK This page intentionally left blank Beyond Defeat and Austerity Much of the critical discussion of the European political economy and the Eurozone crisis has focused upon a sense that solidaristic achievements built up during the post-war period are being continuously unravelled. Whilst there are many reasons to lament the trajectory of change within Europe’s political economy, there are also important developments, trends and processes which have acted to obstruct, hinder and present alternatives to this perceived trajectory of declining social solidarity. These alternatives have tended to be obscured from view, in part as a result of the conceptual approaches adopted within the literature. Drawing from examples across the EU, this book presents an alternative narrative and expla- nation for the development of Europe’s political economy and crisis, emphasizing the agency of what are typically considered subordinate (and passive) actors. By highlighting patterns of resistance, disobedience and disruption, it makes a significant contribution to a literature that has otherwise been more concerned with understanding patterns of heightened domination, exploi- tation, inequality and neoliberal consolidation. It will be of interest to students and scholars alike. David J. Bailey is a Senior Lecturer in Politics in the Department of Political Science and International Studies at the University of Birmingham. He is the author of The Political Economy of European Social Democracy: A Critical Realist Approach (Routledge) and co-editor of European Social Democracy During the Global Economic Crisis: Renovation or Resignation? (Manchester University Press). He recently co-edited a special issue of Comparative European Politics, on contention in the age of austerity in Europe. Mònica Clua-Losada is Associate Professor in Global Political Economy at the Department of Political Science at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley. She is also an executive board member of the Johns Hopkins University-Universitat Pompeu Fabra Public Policy Centre in Barcelona. Her research focuses on the contestation, subversion and resistance by labour and other social movements of capitalist relations of domination. She has written and researched on the effects of the current financial crisis on the Spanish state, the British labour movement and social movements in Spain. Her work has been published in different languages and outlets. Nikolai Huke is a Research Assistant and Lecturer in Political Science at Eberhard Karl’s University, Tübingen. He is the author of two recent books on social movements in Spain during the Eurozone crisis (Krisenproteste in Spanien [2016] and ‘Sie repräsentieren uns nicht’. Soziale Bewegungen und Krisen der Demokratie in Spanien [2017]). His research interests include European integration, democratic theory, critical international political economy, vulnerability and resistance, everyday agency, transformations of welfare states, industrial relations and migration policy. Olatz Ribera-Almandoz is a PhD candidate at the Department of Political and Social Sciences at Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Barcelona. She is also a visiting PhD student at the University of Manchester and a member of the Johns Hopkins University–Universitat Pompeu Fabra Public Policy Centre. Her doctoral research investigates the interaction between social movements and the state in contexts of multilevel political arrangements, with special focus on the (new) demands for social justice, reproduction and welfare in Spain and the United Kingdom. Ripe Series in Global Political Economy Series Editors: James Brassett (University of Warwick, UK), Eleni Tsingou (Copenhagen Business School, Denmark) and Susanne Soederberg (Queen’s University, Canada) The RIPE Series published by Routledge is an essential forum for cutting-edge scholarship in International Political Economy. The series brings together new and established scholars working in critical, cultural and constructivist political economy. Books in the RIPE Series typically combine an innovative contribution to theoretical debates with rigorous empirical analysis. The RIPE Series seeks to cultivate: • Field-defining theoretical advances in International Political Economy • Novel treatments of key issue areas, both historical and contemporary, such as global finance, trade, and production • Analyses that explore the political economic dimensions of relatively neglected topics, such as the environment, gender relations, and migration • Accessible work that will inspire advanced undergraduates and graduate stu- dents in International Political Economy. The RIPE Series in Global Political Economy aims to address the needs of stu- dents and teachers. For a full list of titles in this series, please visit www.routledge.com/RIPE-Series- in-Global-Political-Economy/book-series/RIPE Critical Methods in Political and Cultural Economy Johnna Montgomerie Neoliberalism and Climate Policy in the United States From Market Fetishism to the Developmental State Robert MacNeil Beyond Defeat and Austerity Disrupting (the Critical Political Economy of) Neoliberal Europe David Bailey, Monica Clua-Losada, Nikolai Huke and Olatz Ribera-Almandoz Civil Society and Financial Regulation Consumer Finance Protection and Taxation after the Financial Crisis Lisa Kastner Beyond Defeat and Austerity Disrupting (the Critical Political Economy of) Neoliberal Europe David J. Bailey, Mònica Clua-Losada, Nikolai Huke and Olatz Ribera-Almandoz First published 2018 by Routledge 2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN and by Routledge 711 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10017 Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business © 2018 David Bailey, Mònica Clua-Losada, Nikolai Huke and Olatz Ribera-Almandoz The right of David Bailey, Mònica Clua-Losada, Nikolai Huke and Olatz Ribera-Almandoz to be identified as authors of this work has been asserted by them in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers. Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered trademarks, and are used only for identification and explanation without intent to infringe. British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Names: Bailey, David J., author. Title: Beyond defeat and austerity: disrupting (the critical political economy of) neoliberal Europe / David Bailey, Mònica Clua-Losada, Nikolai Huke and Olatz Ribera-Almandoz. Description: Abingdon, Oxon; New York, NY: Routledge, 2017. | Series: RIPE series in global political economy | Includes bibliographical references and index. Identifiers: LCCN 2017007664| ISBN 9781138890541 (hardback) | ISBN 9781315712314 (e-book) Subjects: LCSH: Economic development–Political aspects–European Union countries. | Neoliberalism–European Union countries. | Europe–Economic integration. | European Union countries–Economic policy–21st century. | European Union countries–Economic conditions–21st century. Classification: LCC HC240 .B246 2017 | DDC 330.94–dc23 LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2017007664 ISBN: 978-1-138-89054-1 (hbk) ISBN: 978-1-315-71231-4 (ebk) Typeset in Times New Roman by Deanta Global Publishing Services, Chennai, India Contents List of illustrations viii Acknowledgements ix Introduction 1 1 Beyond left melancholy: towards a disruption-oriented account 8 2 The limits of market-based pacification: Labour unrest and European integration 34 3 In search of a new radicalism? Workers and trade unions during the European crisis 64 4 Resisting neoliberal Europe, responding to the dismantling of welfare states 108 5 Defending the common: struggles against marketization and austerity in education 161 6 Everyday endeavours towards a needs-based housing policy 197 7 Trapped between authoritarian constitutionalism, pragmatic prefigurative movements and Brexit? Disrupting neoliberal Europe 238 References 249 Index 287 Illustrations Figures 3.1 UK unemployment rate, 2006–2016 69 3.2 Unemployment index, 2006–2013 70 3.3 Involuntary temporary and part-time employment, as proportion of total employment, UK 70 3.4 Average weekly earnings regular pay: real, seasonally adjusted, 2000 = 100 71 3.5 Number of working days lost due to industrial disputes, 1970–2014 71 Table 1.1 Comparing domination- and disruption-focused critical political economy 26 Acknowledgements This book brings together research into the impressive range of actions, campaigns and sometimes imperceptible forms of rebellion that occur at the level of the eve- ryday. Our biggest acknowledgement must therefore go to those who have sought to challenge, contest and disrupt capitalist domination in all its forms, especially since the onset of crisis in 2008, which is the main focus of our study. We were extremely lucky to have over 65 such activists – some of whom are named, whilst others remain unnamed – agree to participate in the interviews we conducted for the book. We are immeasurably grateful for those individuals for sharing their views and experiences, and we hope that we have helped to disseminate the les- sons that they have learned, both accurately and in a way that amplifies the means of disruption. We are also grateful to Kelly Rogers and Saori Shibata, for con- ducting some of the interviews, and to Deborah Hermanns for helping to arrange a number of the interviews. Stephen Bates played an important part in helping with the initial design of the research project. We are grateful to Maka Suárez for allowing us to use her photograph for the front cover. The book benefited from funding awarded by the University of Birmingham School of Government and Society Research Fund and the project AJOVE12 funded by the Catalan govern- ment on ‘Social Inequality and Political Participation during the crisis’. We are also grateful for comments and support given by Joan Benach, Jordi Guiu, Albert Jiménez, Pere Jodar, Vicenç Navarro, the members and administrative staff of the Johns Hopkins–Universitat Pompeu Fabra Public Policy Centre, the participants at the ESRC Seminar in Barcelona (July 2016), Clyde Barrow, Ian Bruff, Tobias Haas, Tim Haughton, Laura Horn, Paul Lewis, Phoebe Moore, Magnus Ryner, Vera Weghmann, Angela Wigger, and Shaun McCrory. Itsuki and Masaki wanted to be mentioned for making one of the authors’ lives more joyful (done), and also thought that Snoozer and Spark should be noted for the fact they did the opposite of help (also done). Lastly, this book was completed the day after Trump was inaugurated – ‘don’t mourn, organize!’.
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